THEECLOGUESOFVIRGIL
TranslatedbyJ.W.MacKail
[1934]
TheEclogues(-Selections-),alsoknowastheBucolics,wereVirgils-firstmajorwork.Thesetenpoemswerewrittenbetween42and39B.C.E.AtthistimeVirgilwasinhisthirties.Thesepoemsareinaparticularformat,thepastoral,whichtheSicilianpoetTheocritus(ca.280B.C.E.)haddevelopedinhisIdyls.Virgilemploysthisformattoexpoundallegoricalthemesusingthelanguageofclassicalmythology,muchlikethebardicpoetryoftheDruids.ThefourthEcloguestandsoutfromthisseries,inwhichVirgilmakessomeenigmaticprophecies,similartothePseudo-SibyllineOracles.DuringthemiddleagesVirgildevelopedareputationasasorceror,anditispossiblethattheesotericmeaningcloakedinthispoemhadsomethingtodowiththis.
Thistranslationhasbeencross-linkedatthechapterleveltotheoriginalLatintext,whichwasnotincludedintheMacKailversion.